Decreased P2P download statistics

The Peer-to-Peer file sharing activity of the consumers seems to have slightly fallen, or so claims the NPD study.

NPD tracks consumer file-sharing activity. It calculated that 14.5 million US households downloaded music files in April. In May the figure fell to 12.7 million, and dropped to 10.4 million in June, the company said today.

But sometimes the statistics can be fooling as...

in April some 852 million songs were acquired via the Internet. Come June, the figure fell to 655 million. April, says NPD, was a record-setting month, but the fact it doesn't provide a figure for May, suggests the dip was relatively small.

Indeed, the average number of files downloaded per household grew between April and June, from 59 to 63.It could be that the recent and more aggressive actions by RIAA, which have been targeted towards individuals may have scared some P2P-users. Also, corporations may now be more aware of the P2P-usage, and have been monitoring the Internet usage of the employees more closely. One must also take into account that the summer time typically is less active in the Internet, as the northern side of the globe is enjoying the summer vacation season - vacations at least have an impact in web browsing activity.

Well, at least its certain that recently there were a number of U.S. citizens that werent file sharing due to lack of electricity. Perhaps the blackout was a RIAA plot as well? ;)

The real issue is people got smart and started using ES5's Direct Downloads that are Verified. So they can spread viruses and warms and still the es5ers won't be effected. Second there is Foldershare where you can make sure a person is trusted by checking their rank on the es5 forums. If they have only astro hype then you don't trust them till they get space cadet. I mostly trust Flight Captains or higher. People have to PM me on es5 to get the invite to my libraries in Foldershare. Secure and Simple and always use the es5 forums as a bench mark to make certain that the person really is a dedicated file sharer. This way you don't have to worry about bad files.
Voodoohippie
www.earthstation5.com
www.foldershare.com

That's exactly what they want, vudoo. By making the dedicated file-sharers take more extreme measures, such as verifying users etc, they are taking a large chunk of available music away from the casual downloader.
There IS one way to kill the regular P2P networks, and that is to force the dedicated P2Pers into hiding.

But i teach my FRIENDS about es5. I goto Yahoo chat rooms and talk to women and if I like them I teach them about Foldershare and es5. I have started a few private networks that way. I have gotten tons of content better then the days Napster was alive. And if a person don't validate every single Mp3 and I find songs that skip I take their permission away till they can learn to CHECK ALL THEIR FILES!!
Voodoohippie

I download my fair share of MP3s and I have my onw reasons for doing so. However, I am curious to know what motivates the rest of you to download? Is it corporate greed, or consistently crappy music being pushed by the major labels, or something else?

I guess itīs how easy it is, compared to going to the store. Having said that I should point out that I rarely download full albums, just single tracks.
Then itīs also a matter of finances. i have perhaps 20 bands that I really like. Each band ships maybe one every second year. You do that math, a high-school student canīt afford to buy all the CDīs he desperately wants to listen to.

I also don't download full albums, just single tracks, which is a function of the redundant, clone-band crap that is being forced down our throats by the major labels. Mind you, I am against the pirating of 1000's of MP3s mainly because the artists are getting screwed out of rightful royalties...which BTW amounts to about a buck per CD. I typically listen to a couple of songs and if I like them, go and buy the CD (I do the same with software). I guess the websites that offer "buck-a-toon" downloads might be the ticket.

I use to do that too. If I liked 5 songs from a CD I'd buy the CD instead of downloading the entire CD. Now that the record labels have gotten very greedy I stopped. However now that Real One has a service for $10 per month and I could stream it into my Audio Record Wizard I'll consider buying the service. At least with Real One I can get the veriety of music I want.
Voodoohippie

Do you guys think there is any truth in the assertion that downloading is causing a loss of sales which in turn forces CD prices up which in turn makes more people download? I think it will all even out over time. This situation is similar to when tape cassettes were introduced to the market. The labels crapped themselves because consumers could tape music and take it anywhere and not pay royalties on that reproduced music.

Good point. God forbid if anyone figures out how to make CDs at home with a double boiler and old plastic toys. Perhaps the record industry should figure out a better way pay all their artisits, cover promotions, and distribute music. I believe they call it fiscal restraint. But then who am I to tell Justin Timber-fake that he shouldn't have three homes and 9 cars. WTF!?!?!

No kidding. Groups and artists are starting to sound alot alike. Liz Phair (which I listened to on Rhapsody) now sounds alot like Avril Lavigne. Her older stuff is definately Alternative and not that popish. Rhapsody is a great service cuz you can listen to an entire album. But because of the greedy behavior of the RIAA people are turned off from subscribing. I love the service and I do subscribe. I did since Oct 4 and I spend less time Downloading and more time listening to my favorite music. So subscribe to Best Buy Rhapsody and also use Audio Record Wizard of you want to record the streams. But don't forget to sign the petition against the RIAA's actions because this is what is actually killing music as we know it not us computer users.
Voodoohippie

Quote:But don't forget to sign the petition against the RIAA's actions because this is what is actually killing music as we know it not us computer users.

I wonder if thatīs true. Because if you think about it, there are millions of people who illegally share music. That must have some kind of an impact, are we - the file-sharers - just living in denial?

Well no one wants to be pushed around like that. My sister-in-law was really worried about me getting sued so she bought me Rhapsody but I love it so much that I will continue with the service. But others will not subscribe because of the threats. There could have been better marketing techniques. I have learned in my days of customer service and telemarketing that you don't want to use brut streingth against the custommers but you have to use rebuttals a few times. But the RIAA is not following any rules of ethics and these guys are a very poor example of how a business should act. They are gonna have to learn that Rhapsody is the ONLY solution as people are not gonna pay .99 per song but will pay $10 per month to listen without limits for as long as they subscribe to the service. I look at it as the same as subscribing to HBO or Cinemax but you control what is played. And I feel that the artists that are being played should get paid but not those crappy artists that can't carry a tune if their life depended upon it. I for one am tired of the rap adap crap that is shoved down my throat and the pop sound alikes. I'm listening to Belly on Rhapsody now and Man I love all the alternative bands I can listen to now. I know it takes time to buy all the copyrights from all the major labels but Man Rhapsody has really taken off. Just get rid of the Apple clones and the Rhapsody service will even have more. Already I've not found anything in my music taste missing.
As far as movies we need a flat rate service for those as well. I am not gonna pay .99 per movie.
voodoohippie

I agree that the RIAA is using pretty disgusting tactics in their fight against piratism, but that wasnīt what I was wondering about.

Quote:people are not gonna pay .99 per song but will pay $10 per month to listen without limits

I think that depends quite a bit on your listening habits. The subscription is probably excelent for people who listen to massess of music, trying to get "a bang for their buck" or however you americans put it. I myself usually try to concentrate on one new album at a time, this way you really develop a feel for the music - youīll have a better idea of whether you like the music or not.
Thatīs why I think a service offering downloads might be a better choice for some people.
Thereīs also the matter of recording the tracks. You need to take an active approach and record the tracks with a recording software. With downloads you just... well... download.

This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 16 Oct 2003 @ 7:24

Yes I see your point but with Rhapsody you can listen to either the entire album or set up a playlist of songs from the artist from a mix of their albums. Sure you need to use Audio Record Wizzard to record the songs to be able to burn without limits but well that is not that big of a deal. If you want to Download the track you pay $.79 per song. But with other services you have to pay the .79 or $.99 to Download it. Pressplay I think had the ability to listen to streams but it was all pop and no classic Rock or Alternative. It's important to have the older stuff as well and I feel that Napster won't because it is too new and all of these other services will only make things harder for the consummer. There has to be a better deal for us sonsummers.
Voodoohippie

I actually don't mind buying CDs because it is a process. You walk into a store, sort through a ton of CD's, shoot the breeze with the staff, and walk away with something in-hand. It was an adventure. You were paying for an experience. I remember lining up at the local record store for the new "Van Halen 1984" album? God, I couldn't wait to get home and throw it on the turntable and crank it to 11. Now you can just "click" three times and have it downloaded in 3 minutes. Where is the fun in that? Damn it...I want someone to sell me the experience not just the product.

If I were the riaa I would be shooting myself right now. Imagine how much money they could have made had they just embraced technology when napster came out. Instead they were blinded by greed and refused to change with the times.As with any business, if you don't listen to your customers you become irrelevant.It's their own fault that things have come to this. P2P is not the best way to get anything because you never know what you will get. Not to mention the viruses and worms lurking out there. [RIAA YOU REAP WHAT YOU SEW[/]

This message has been edited since its posting. Latest edit was made on 17 Oct 2003 @ 14:34

Yes es5 and the darknets are truly the answer for the Movies and Warez. No matter how illegal they want to make copiers/rippers there will be people creating them anonymously on the anonymous p2p and ftp nets. People won't put up with the crap and I believe that this is why many software programmers are using adware and offering the software for FREE. The day will come when Microsoft offers Word, Excell, Windows XP (or a version of windows thereof) for FREE and it will be Ad-Supported. I can imagine Windows loading with a pepsi commercial running before the operating system finishes booting and if you want Ad-Free versions of say Windows XP you pay for it. Software for computers was first ment to be FREE (remember the TI 99/4A and Commodore VIC 20/64 days? people wrote software gladly for FREE and distributes the software to the user groups FREELY. Then something happened. Game companies decided to make money from computer users and offer games for a price. But the users learned to copy/Crack their copy protections. The cycle is reapeated in the pc world today. Soon there will be a sort of Super Snapshot program just like it was for the 64 where you run the program past the copy protection and hit the snapshot button on a cartridge and poof you can then save it to a disk. When you run the snapshot it loads past where the program looks for the copy protection. Poof unprotected program every time. For CD's you could have a program that keeps track of how the CD loads and when you press the button it has the encryption memorized and poof exact image. So best thing to do os offer your warez for FREE and get a sponser like electronic companies or on line companies or whatever. It don't have to log anyone's surfing habits but simply push a ad or two or have a bannar at the bottom of the program and that is it.
Voodoohippie